Like The QueenWhatever happens to strike my fancy, but surely some sort of fiber content.

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It sounds like the "nuudles" are a version of the potato starch thingies that I mainly know as a biodegradable (and non-staticky, and therefore less annoying) replacement for styrofoam packing peanuts.

We have great fun with them in my department whenever a package comes with the starch thingies. (Mostly it involves seeing how fast you can make them dissolve).

I don't think it would be an overly silly toy to share with adults, considering that grown - in some cases, VERY grown - biologists seem to enjoy them.

The trip to Ferry Farm never came off. By 9:45 it was snowing and by 10 it was blowing in horizontally. I wasn’t about to drive a car full of school kids north in that weather. A quick change of plans was called for, but fortunately, our house holds some magical attraction for small children. Perhaps there are just too many mythical stories about LD or perhaps there are the right number of dogs, but whatever it is, little children love to come here and BH’s girls were quick off the mark to agree to the change.

It snowed all morning and about 15 minutes into the visit the girls found (up in William’s Room, of course) the bag of

I had seen them at Ben Franklin at Christmas time and couldn’t resist. I don’t have anyone to buy toys for anymore and don’t usually miss it, but these just tickled my fancy. My first thought was to give them to the YD’s to play with on a rainy Sunday afternoon but as the days passed I felt more and more embarrassed about offering such a silly toy to them. (I don’t always display my silly side, but it’s there.) I figured their purpose would reveal itself and when a little blonde head came down holding the bag in front of her with such a questioning look on her face I didn’t even have to hear what she wanted. Some looks tell it all.

We spread a sheet on the living room floor and those girls were busy for 3 hours. It was the happiest time. Lunch was eaten picnic style in the den while we watched one of the Jack Tale movies produced by Davenport Films. This one was very cute, about how Jack won the girl of his dreams by stealing his future father-in-law's bedsheets when the FiL was sleeping. The picture was a little dark, but I’m hoping that’s because the TV is right in front of a window so the night scenes all blacked out due to glare. At least, I’m telling myself that.

The snow let up around 1 or so without ever accumulating but we had enough fun to not mind missing all the George Washington fun. We’ll plan another trip up there for a warmer spring day.

The rest of the day was spent carding bright colored rolags and spinning them on my Golding spindle. I have so much pretty, but felted, handpainted roving - some of it in rather exotic fiber blends. I’m sure one has angora in it. I managed to card lots of noils into a good number of the rolags because it’s been so long since I’ve done any carding. By the late afternoon I’d remembered all the tips & tricks I know and my rolags became lovely silky soft things but at least half of them are only going to spin up “textured” yarn.

While playing with the spindles I made up a sample of an extremely textured yarn made with mohair locks and plied with thin tight merino. The students in my March class are all quilters and spinning for them will be an alternative fiber craft. I think they might like to know how to make something they could use to ornament a quilt block. This is certainly an exotic yarn. I’ll make one more using glittery thread and perhaps I’ll put some dyed mohair locks in their kits. I only expect about 10 students and we’ll have 3 hours for the class. Time for lots of fun.

I haven’t yet knit up the beautiful corriedale. I hadn’t actually planned to knit anything yesterday anyway, so I don’t feel behind schedule. But today I’ll pull out my trusty Barbara Walker books, pick a pretty diamond cable and cast on. The other yarn I’d thought I might use with this project is a no-go. It’s a Merino blend called Rose Garden and it’s just tooo much of a blend. I know, I’m the Queen of Bold Contrast, but I do think I can select subtle blends. This one isn’t just subtle - it’s invisible. No - if I need more yarn, I’ll just spin more.

And now it’s mid morning of a gorgeous sunshiny winter day. It’s not supposed to get out of the 30’s but all that sun will dry my laundry. Best of all - there is the whole of tomorrow to play in after this sweet day is done. The last Monday holiday till Memorial Day so I plan to savor every delicious moment of it. Hope the same for you.